The present invention relates to masonry block wall systems, and more particularly to a block wall for use as a fence or retaining wall, constructed of masonry block panels without the use of mortar or grout and supported by pilasters setting upon piers spaced at predetermined intervals along a fence line with or without a grade beam spanning the piers.
The construction of a block wall using known materials and methods is time consuming and requires the expensive skills of a mason. The expense of conventional materials and the time required for building these structures using conventional methods limit the use of these otherwise durable masonry block systems. Unlike wood fences, masonry block wall systems resist weathering and provide a permanent structure that requires little, if any, maintenance. Block walls also provide excellent security and privacy. However, block walls require structural integrity such as the ability to withstand exterior forces like high winds and earthquakes. The fulfillment of these structural requirements is thought to necessitate the use of current building materials and techniques. The utilization of some modern building techniques such as post tensioning along a block wall system provide some savings in time and expense, but post tensioning block wall systems require the use of a mason to construct the system using mortar, and skilled personnel to install and tighten the post tensioning apparatus. Elimination of skill intensive building techniques and outdated materials requiring special skill, and streamlining the process for building masonry block walls would result in substantial savings in time, labor costs, and material costs for building such walls.
Existing masonry block walls require frequent vertically extending reinforcing bars anchored in either a concrete pier and footer, or grade beam at the base of the wall. These vertical reinforcing bars are typically extended upward through voids in the masonry blocks. The voids surrounding the vertical reinforcing bars are either conventionally filled with grout to connect the reinforcing bar to the masonry blocks in the wall, or in the case of post tensioning systems, the reinforcing bar is connected to the masonry by way of a steel plate and nut assembly at the top of the wall.
The present invention provides a masonry block wall panel and pilaster system supported by piers that eliminates the need for substantial trenching, concrete grade beams and skilled labor. The present invention relies upon piers at predetermined intervals along the fence line with or without grade beams. When used in poor soil conditions, grade beams between the piers along the grade level support the courses of masonry blocks. The piers provide support for the pilasters by way of reinforcing rods that extend vertically from the pier up through the top of the pilaster and are held in place with deflection restraint clips (DRCs). The block wall panels of the present system are constructed between the pilasters, and held in place by the pilasters, with reinforcing rods extending horizontally through voids in the course of masonry blocks, with the reinforcing rods held in place by DRCs. The reinforcing rods may extend horizontally through every other course of blocks or with greater or less spacing. Cap blocks may be placed on top of the block wall system as the top course using common adhesives or DRCs. Constructing a block wall system of the present invention uses substantially less concrete and labor, and does not require skilled labor.
The present invention utilizes conventional masonry blocks that can be positioned on top of a grade beam or simply placed directly on the soil, without the use of conventional mortared joints or grout to connect the reinforcing rods to the blocks. All joints between adjacent blocks are mortarless, accomplished by using interlocking or tongue-and-groove block configurations and reinforcing rods held in place by DRCs. The DRCs eliminate the need for grout by holding the horizontal and vertical reinforcing rods in place.
Advantages of the present invention include a block wall system incorporating the advantages of prior art block wall systems at a much lower cost in materials, time and labor; a block wall system that may be constructed without mortar or grout while providing substantial structural integrity; a block wall system that may incorporate vertical post-tensioning rods along equally spaced pilasters to increase structural strength and the ability of the wall to withstand external forces; a block wall system that may include post tensioning rods at all or some of the pilasters; a block wall system that minimizes or eliminates the need for skilled labor in the construction of the block wall system; a block wall system that may incorporate grade beams spanning pier footings along a fence line; a block wall system that significantly simplifies the construction of a block wall enabling individuals with no experience to build the block wall system.